130 WILD FOWL SHOOTING. 



muzzle flies up at the moment of firing. To obviate 

 that you should hold low ; besides, as you are usually 

 but slightly higher than the object shot at, the shot 

 striking between you and the duck, will glance on the 

 water, losing but little, if any, of its force ; these same 

 shots are often the ones that kill the bird. Here comes 

 more of them, and for a few minutes you and I are 

 kept busy. Then there comes a lull in the flight, and 

 feeling assured that we will only get occasional shots, 

 we send the dog through the wild rice after the dead 

 and crippled, while we pick up those lying dead in the 

 open water. You noticed how the dog, a few moments 

 ago, passed two dead ones and started after a cripple ? 

 Some hunters claim dogs should be trained that way. 

 It isn't necessary ; their natural instinct prompts them 

 to do this. The fluttering, moving duck, filled with 

 life, trying its utmost to escape, flapping its wings 

 against the water, maybe uttering frightened quacks, 

 attracts the dog's attention, and he hastens after the es- 

 caping bird. Of course, as time adds knowledge and 

 experience to a dog's hunting education, he sees the 

 necessity of first catching cripples ; but a young dog 

 will also do it, because he loves the excitement of the 

 chase. 



While we have been picking up these birds, I noticed 

 about half a mile east of us, ducks dropping into some 

 spot. There are others there feeding and enticing them 

 down. We will go there and place our decoys. The 

 day is pleasant, with wind blowing freshly from the 

 south, — ^possibly it is not to your liking, and you recall 

 stories of stormy days, northwest winds, lowering and 

 threatening clouds ; you look around for the screeching 

 gulls, harbingers of violent winds, for then you feel 



